"All the available data, including photographs, points to it being Thomas Evans. There is an investigation going on with forensics and DNA to confirm his identity," Kenya Defence Forces spokesman Colonel David Obonyo said.

Evans, in his mid-20s and also known as Abdul Hakim, is a Muslim convert whose family lives in Buckinghamshire in southern England. He reportedly travelled to Somalia in 2011 to join Shebab.

A group of militants yesterday attacked a Kenyan army base in Baure, close to the border with Somalia. Two Kenyan soldiers were killed and 11 Shebab fighters, including two "Caucasians", according to Obonbyo.

If confirmed, Evans' death will be the first reported case of a British Islamist militant being killed on Kenyan soil. The British embassy in Nairobi said it was "seeking to confirm reports" that a Briton had been killed. "We are aware of the reports," a British embassy spokesman informed.